


Back To The Place Only You And I Share

by senioritastyles



Series: 25 Days of Ficmas [3]
Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Boys In Love, Cashton, Fluff, M/M, Puppies, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, boys with puppies, cute stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-03
Updated: 2016-12-03
Packaged: 2018-09-06 06:28:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8738323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/senioritastyles/pseuds/senioritastyles
Summary: Calum feels like a kid in a candy store, bouncing in the passenger's seat of the car with his hand squeezing the life out of Ashton's. He'd been absolutely over the moon when Ashton finally agreed to adopt a dog last week, due to Calum's relentless begging and even the test run of them babysitting their friend's dog, and he'd been badgering Ashton every day since to go pick one out. Ashton delayed the process for things that made sense in the grand scheme of things, like making sure their backyard fence was sturdy and properly secured and putting all of their breakables away in the attic, but Calum was too impatient for things that made sense. Now they're finally driving to the local shelter to pick out a pup, having already filled out the applications and gotten approved to take one home, and Calum can't sit still with all the excitement buzzing in his body. Or: Calum and Ashton get a puppy.





	

**Author's Note:**

> (title is from Long Way Home by 5 Seconds of Summer)

Calum feels like a kid in a candy store, bouncing in the passenger's seat of the car with his hand squeezing the life out of Ashton's. He'd been absolutely over the moon when Ashton finally agreed to adopt a dog last week, due to Calum's relentless begging and even the test run of them babysitting their friend's dog, and he'd been badgering Ashton every day since to go pick one out. Ashton delayed the process for things that made sense in the grand scheme of things, like making sure their backyard fence was sturdy and properly secured and putting all of their breakables away in the attic, but Calum was too impatient for things that made sense. Now they're finally driving to the local shelter to pick out a pup, having already filled out the applications and gotten approved to take one home, and Calum can't sit still with all the excitement buzzing in his body.

 

"Calum, you gotta calm down babe." Ashton chuckles, rubbing his thumb soothingly over the back of Calum's hand. 

 

"Sorry, I'm just so excited that we're finally doing this. I finally get to have a dog and it's with the person I love most in the world." Calum admits, settling down as Ashton turns into the shelter parking lot.

 

Ashton's smile grows tenfold at Calum's words and he can't help but squeeze the younger boy's hand tighter. "I'm excited too bub, but if you get too worked up then the dogs will too and it'll be impossible to find one that fits right for us."

 

Calum bites his lip and nods, working to calm his jittery nerves as Ashton puts the car in park in the mostly empty lot. He refrains from throwing off his seatbelt and jumping out of the car at a full sprint for the door like he wants to, instead moving at a normal pace and hopping out of Ashton's brand new truck and shutting the door after himself, waiting for Ashton to come around and take his hand before walking toward the front door of the building. Ashton opens the door for him and guides him inside first, his ears immediately filled with the echoing bark of the dogs. It makes him feel excited again, knowing there's a mass of dogs just behind the wall right in front of him, but he settles himself again by using Ashton's hand in his as an anchor. 

 

"Hello boys, can I help you?" A woman comes from around the back corner, all smiles and a bright cheery voice.

 

"Yeah, hi, uhm we're here to adopt a dog." Ashton says, his attention mostly focused on Calum as the younger boy starts rocking on his feet. "We already filled out all the paperwork."

 

"Okay sure, let me just see your IDs so I can look you up in the system." She says and Ashton notices that her nametag says 'Lynn'. 

 

They follow her to the desk across the room, handing her their IDs as she sits down in front of the computer. She starts typing away on the keyboard, slamming down on the 'enter' key before nodding with a smile and handing them back their cards. She hits another button and the printer behind her starts up, spitting out a single piece of paper. 

 

Lynn grabs it and sets it in front of Ashton with a pen. "I just need each of you to sign this form, basically confirming that you agree to accept the responsibility of adopting a dog and that you 

 

accept any risks that may come with that." 

 

Ashton nods and signs his name in big looping letters, passing the pen over to Calum when he's done so the younger boy can do the same. Calum finishes signing and hands the pen and paper back to Lynn, watching her slide the form into a folder labeled 'waivers' before she stands up and comes back around the desk and gestures for them to follow her toward the entrance to the back part of the shelter where the animals are kept. 

 

"Okay boys, here we are. Every dog back here is up for adoption, and on the front of each kennel you'll see a sign with the dog's name, estimated age, gender, and the breed or mix of breeds. You can walk around, take your time, and if you'd like to go in to play with and sort of test out a dog, then just let me know!" She explains, her smile bright and her voice the type of enthusiastic that says she's genuinely here to help and that she loves her job. 

 

"Thank you." Calum says, grabbing Ashton's hand again and leading him down a random row of dogs. 

 

The first dog they see is a fully grown 2 year old lab named Al, and Calum crouches to get a better look. Ashton can tell that, while Calum loves and cherishes every dog he meets, that magical connection between the two isn’t quite there. Calum's always talking about the magic of meeting the perfect dog, how it just feels right immediately and you just seem to know that it's 'meant to be', and Ashton knows that as cute as Al is, Calum doesn't feel it and neither does Ashton. The younger boy smiles as he stands up and moves to stroll by the next few kennels, seeing a variety of breeds and ages and energy levels, none quite fitting in Calum's mind. The same thing happens down each row of dogs in the shelter, that immediate connection still missing, and Ashton can sense that Calum is starting to feel upset about it. 

 

"I'm sure our dream dog is in here somewhere baby, just relax and keep looking." Ashton assures him, running a hand through Calum's hair.

 

"Ash, this is the last row." Calum mumbles, sounding put out by the fact that he's turning the corner around the final stretch of the shelter. 

 

Ashton takes a deep breath and follows Calum, watching the younger boy carefully squat down in front of the first dog, clearly itching to find that special feeling. Ashton's eyes wander around the remaining kennels as Calum tries to interact with the dog, scanning the row for something but not knowing exactly what. His eyes zero in on two somewhat small and squishy looking paws pressed up against the front of the chain-link kennel, each one surrounded a mix of very fluffy black and white fur. His feet carry him over and he's met with two super dark brown eyes and an adorable face, the dog wiggling with excitement at Ashton's presence. His sign says that his name is Sampson and that he's a border collie, about six months old, and Ashton feels his heart swell as the way the dog's tongue lolls out of his mouth and his feet can't seem to stay still. Sampson is mostly black fur with four white feet and some white fur on his neck and the front part of his belly that carries all the way up to his snout and over his face, the misshapen stripe off-center and more towards the left.

 

Ashton feels that magic moment Calum's always describing, a connection that pulls on his heart and prompts him to call out. "Cal, come here!"

 

Calum, who is kneeling on the floor a few kennels away, looks over and sees Ashton sitting cross-legged in front of a happy looking dog. He scrambles up and hurries over, standing just behind Ashton and looking at the absolutely downright adorable little puppy. He too can feel something when he looks at this dog, and he's quick to scope out Lynn and request to go inside of his kennel. Lynn grabs her keys and follows him to Sampson's gate, unlocking it and carefully ushering them inside. She stands watch as Calum and Ashton sit down on the floor inside the kennel, letting Sampson gallop around them as he pleased before the pup settles down and comes over to Calum. He stands up on his two hind legs and his paws land on Calum's chest, his excited panting hitting Calum directly in the face and making him giggle and he ruffles Sampson's fur. Calum takes a chance and lifts Sampson up in his hands, happy to find that the dog doesn't squirm and fight to get away as he carefully sits up and his knees and shuffles over to Ashton. The older boy chuckles and takes Sampson from Calum's hands when the younger boy offers, petting the soft fur and mumbling a quiet greeting. Calum watches carefully as he dog wiggles his way around until he comes face to face with Ashton, panting in his face too before leaning in and happily landing a lick over the tip of Ashton's nose. Calum's jaw nearly drops as Ashton gets caught up in the moment and kisses the top of Sampson's head, feeling a sense of déjà vu because he's always loved to kiss Ashton's nose and Ashton is generous with his head kisses when it comes to Calum.

 

It's a no-brainer when Calum looks happily over at Lynn and nods. "We want this one."

 

Ashton is smiling too as Lynn nods with a look of satisfaction. "Perfect choice." She assures them, reaching to the side of the kennel and grabbing a rope with a loop on the end, coming inside the kennel and wrapping the loop carefully around Sampson's neck. If you'd like to walk him back out to the front, I'll go grab his papers for you."

 

Calum takes the rope from her and they follow her out with Sampson wiggling happily around and trotting his way out of the kennel area. The pup seems to know that he's theirs already, seems to sense that he belongs to them as much as they belong to him, and Calum can't keep the smile off his face as he looks at Ashton.

 

"Alright, here we go." Lynn chirps, coming back into view with a set of stapled papers and another pen in her hands. "I just need you to sign this as proof of adoption and then you'll be all set to take him home!"

 

Ashton grins and signs his name again, taking the rope from Calum so the younger boy can do the same, watching Sampson sit calmly at their feet. Calum finishes signing and Lynn takes the paper, pulling apart the staple and handing them the bottom copy. "This copy is for you. Congratulations boy, and congrats to you too SammyWammy." She coos, leaning down to rub the dog's head briefly.

 

Calum scoops Sampson up in his arms and holds him carefully, pulling the rope off of him and handing it back to Lynn. "We're going right to the pet store to get a leash and collar so we can just carry him until then." He explains at her perplexed expression, watching Ashton fold up their copy of the form and put it in his pants pocket. 

 

Lynn takes the rope and nods, waving as they head for the front door. "Have a great day boys!"

 

"Thank you, you too!" Ashton calls back, letting the door shut quietly behind him and walking side by side toward their truck with Calum and their new dog.

 

\---------------------------------------------------------

 

"Ash, what about this one?" Calum asks for probably the twelfth time in the last five minutes, holding up a small green collar for inspection.

 

Ashton shakes his head from the opposite side of the aisle, turning back to search for the best retractable leash for Sampson. He finally finds one that's a decent length and looks easy to hold on runs and walks, plucking it from the hook and walking back over to the cart. The sight is absolutely adorable, with Calum sat up on his knees inside the cart with Sampson right beside him, the dog standing up on two legs with his front paws resting on the top of the cart, looking like he's copying Calum's position as the Maori boy leans over and reaches for a different collar that catches his eye. 

 

"What about this?" He asks Ashton, holding up a red plaid bandana style collar that has a silver metal loop and a belt-like buckle to secure it around the dog's neck, several holes punched into the material to make it adjustable.

 

Ashton smiles, glancing from Sampson to the collar before nodding. "Perfect."

 

Calum smiles too, setting the collar next to the leash Ashton picked out and adjusting his position before Ashton starts pushing the cart down the aisle again. They grab a bag of bacon flavored training treats and a huge bag of food that Ashton slides on the metal part underneath of the actual cart before making their way towards the bowls and toys. Ashton takes on the bowl finding task while Calum carefully gets himself out of the cart and grabs Sampson, holding the pup tightly around the middle as he places his feet on the ground in front of the toys. Sampson sniffs around with his tail wagging a mile a minute, trying to jump excitedly into the pile of soft plush toys in front of him.

 

"Pick one out Sammy, go ahead." Calum encourages, chuckling at the dog's obvious excitement.

 

Ashton chuckles too, setting two medium sized metallic red bowls inside the cart as he watches Calum try to contain Sampson. The dog zeroes in on a lion plush toy, clamping his mouth down on it and yanking it off of the bottom shelf, causing the toy to let out a loud squeak. Sampson holds it in his mouth and refuses to let it go even when Calum tries to pull on it, making the two boys laugh hysterically and just lift the dog up and put him back in the cart with his beloved toy in his mouth. Their final stop is the dog tag machine just near the registers, and Calum takes the job of picking out the shape and putting in all the information to be engraved on the tag. Ashton pets Sampson's head as Calum chooses a small black bone shaped tag, typing in 'Sampson' to go on the front and their address and phone number to go on the back. He hits 'done' and the machine whirs to life, spitting out the tag after a minute. Calum grabs it and holds it in his palm as they get in line to check out. The cashier smiles and greets them happily, scanning their items one by one and bagging them up. 

 

"He uh, he won't let go of the toy." Ashton says sheepishly, holding back a laugh as Calum once again tries to take the lion from the dog. 

 

The cashier laughs and brings around the handheld scanner turning the toy's price tag toward it and waiting for the beep that signals it has been scanned. "Happens more than you'd think." 

 

Calum chuckles and shakes his head, pulling out his wallet and swiping his card in the machine to pay. They get the bags and the receipt and take everything back to the car, loading it all in before Calum grabs Sampson and slides into the passenger's seat with the collar and name tag in hand. Ashton gets in and starts up the truck, backing out as Calum hooks the tag onto the collar and then carefully wraps the bandana part around the front of Sampson's neck and pulls the sides around to buckle it on. He sizes it up so that it fits snugly but it's not too tight and he pulls the strap through the loop, smiling once it's settled in place. Sampson seems unfazed by the new addition, still holding his lion.

 

"That thing needs a name." Ashton says, putting on his turn signal as they pull up to a stop light.

 

Calum snorts but nods in agreement, thinking for a second before he comes up with something. "It looks like a Randy."

 

Ashton laughs but nods, turning the car. "Randy it is then."

 

\------------------------------------------------------------

 

The first thing they do when they get home is take Sampson through the gate into the backyard and let him loose. The pup finally drops his toy on the ground and goes running all over the place, sniffing every inch of grass with Calum watching him closely from the cement patio. Ashton goes through the sliding back door back to the car to bring everything inside, setting it all down in the kitchen before making his way back to Calum. The younger boy is playing with Sampson in the grass, lying on his stomach locked in a game of tug-of-war with Randy as the prize. Sampson's tail is wiggling back and forth frantically as he yanks with all of his puppy might and tries to win his precious Randy from Calum's strong grip. Ashton laughs to himself, sitting down on one of their patio chairs and relaxing back, watching his boys with nothing but love in his eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> WELCOME TO DAY 3 OF FICMAS!!!! This one is especially dedicated to my Lynnie which is why she makes a guest appearance here, because she loves Calum and Ashton and puppies so it just made sense. I won't lie, I'm a little hungover right now from my first ever frat party experience last night (which was super fun by the way except my white converse are now a little orange) so this is gonna be a brief note compared to the other ones, but I hope you enjoyed and please tell me what you think below! <3
> 
>  
> 
> tumblr: senioritastyles & babyhemhem  
> twitter: xtraceex  
> instagram: traceethekid  
> snapchat: youngtray


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